Maternity leave, best time to go?

So I know the earliest you can go on maternity leave is 11 weeks before the baby is due. I know most people try and hold out for as long as possible. I work in a hospital and have quite a stressful job, ontop of already having a 5 year old who I take to school in the morning before rushing off to work! Baby is due at the end of May...however, given I am high risk, I was planning on starting maternity leave in April...BUT...our holiday goes from April to April, so I will be entitled to that time, I'm not sure weather to take April as holiday...or see if I can get paid the holiday pay after my smp...when do you plan on going on maternity leave? Xx

Last time I was told to stop work at 36 weeks due to a heart irregularity (mine). I also work in the NHS and took 2 weeks off annual leave before my mat leave started. I went off in November. I took a month of annual leave off at the end of my maternity too. This time I'm due 30th April and plan to start my maternity 9th April. Since hols run April to March, I plan on taking about half of my annual leave allowance at the end of this maternity leave to extend it a bit.

I always think of maternity leave as including pregnancy. So when I'm finding my job too difficult I take it and just go from there. I usually end up taking an extra month or two in the end unpaid so my babe makes it to 12 months before I need to leave them for a couple days a week with pumped milk! If you can take paid vacation to extend your leave then do it!!

It really depends how you are
Feeling, first time around I worked till 38 weeks, this time I stopped at 32 due to my SPD and generally feeling crap! There’s no way I could be at work now. So I would say be flexible with how you feel, if you have an understanding boss they may let you stay on a bit longer if you are feeling good/or similarly move it it you feel crap x

Im finishing 2 days before 38 weeks. I work in an office so I am sat down the majority of the time. The struggle is getting my 5 and 3 year old to school then trying to get into the city centre for 9.30.

Our HR lady did say she thought I was working to close to due date, but I have done it twice before and know my body.

I had a sweep with my eldest 2 days before due date (closely monitored from loosing twins at 24 weeks previously), but with our second I went 5 days over, so hoping I will be ok x

I've finished at 36 weeks both times. The first time I had my daughter a week later at 37 weeks (actually the day she was born had originally been my last day of work, but I'd panicked a few weeks before and moved it a week earlier!). In that case, I'm really glad I didn't work longer as I really needed a few days to get ready first. I stopped about the same this time. I'd hoped to work a bit longer (I'm essentially self-employed, so I can choose when I want to stop as long as everything or most everything gets done), but I was worn out by about 36+3 and feeling really distracted worrying about going early again and not having things ready (especially as once you have children, there's so much more to get ready as you have to plan for the birth and after for them as well). So that's when I stopped. For me, it was the right time both times, but I'm not restricted on when I can go back either. I aim to take a full year off from the birth and then go back part-time. If I was trying to plan around SMP and annual leave, etc. I would try to work as long as possible, even if modified work, to have as much time off after baby is born, but realistically I don't think this would be much past 36/37 weeks if I could help it.

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